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Pipeline Workshops: What Builders Say About It

In their own words: comments from builders (and others) who have attended a Pipeline workshop™:

“The simulations were a brilliant way to demonstrate and drive home the significance of cycle time improvements and improving trade partner efficiencies on ROA and Net Income.” (Keith Porterfield, COO, Goodall Homes, Gallatin, TN)

“Pipeline workshops, through hands-on simulations and classroom instruction, provide excellent learning experiences to see WIP turns at different velocities, and the effects on Return on Assets. The principles and disciplines, if applied in the field by you as a builder, will increase your ROA.” (Scott Jagoe, President, Jagoe Homes, Owensboro, KY)

“All of our construction guys came back from the conference with a lot of new info.” (Doug French, Vice President, Stylecraft Builders, Inc., College Station, TX)

“I participated in the first-ever [BuilderVelocity] workshop, spending two days exploring the ins-and-outs of production, inventory, and scheduling. It was quite intense, challenging, and not for the intellectually lazy. We played repeated rounds of a building simulation game, and the students saw clearly that scheduling requires careful thought and planning.” (Scott Sedam, President, TrueNorth Development, South Lyon, MI, excerpted from the April, 2014 issue of Professional Builder, “Taming the Chaos”)

“My clients can all benefit from the Pipeline workshop and simulation. A powerful case for builders to pay attention not only to how much money they make on each home, but how fast they can turn their inventory. In today’s market, when pricing power is limited by external forces and construction cost pressure is increasing, velocity is the most reliable lever for driving enterprise value.” (Clark Ellis, Partner, Continuum Advisory Group, Raleigh, NC)

“[the] Pipeline workshop was by far the most engaging workshop I have attended to date. The principles shared relate to home building companies of all shapes and sizes. The two day program kept me engaged the entire time with a mix of lecture, open discussions and simulations of practical application. I have already applied some of what I learned to my business and I’m looking forward to fantastic results.” (Mark Refosco, President, Marcus Allen Homes, Arthur Rutenberg Homes franchisee, Jacksonville, FL)

“The Pipeline Workshop is an extremely effective insight to production, for homebuilders of all sizes. Whether your company builds 5, 50, 500 or 5000 units annually, you will leave this event with a deeper understanding of your company’s production capacity, and where you need to focus your attention, to perform at an optimal level.” (Adam Roller, President/COO, IH First Coast, LLC, St. Augustine, FL; an Inland Homes® Builder)

“The Pipeline workshop quickly and clearly helped me realize our company’s mismanagement of the amount of work-in-process and job starts. I believe our new thinking on those principles, along with the techniques we learned, will reduce our cycle times substantially.” (Bob Anderson, Construction Manager, Stylecraft Homes, College Station, TX)

“The simulations at [the] Pipeline workshop [were] a very innovative way to demonstrate the critical nature and relationship between cycle time, inventory turn, margin, and return on assets. Both days were filled with learning, engagement, and inquiry that proved to be invaluable.” (Vishaal Gupta, President, Park Square Homes, Orlando, FL)

“It is going to help our business refocus on what all of us already know, but lose focus of, in the haste to make money and sell as many homes as possible. What we have learned will benefit [our] business and margins, if we become disciplined, [and] stick to the principles of the pipeline.” (Sean Ward, Field Manager, Eagle Construction of Virginia, Richmond, VA)

“Think the same way, and you stay in the same place as everyone else; challenge yourself with the new theories and strategies, and [you] become more effective in your company[y’s] achievement with your team. You get to take these theories and teachings and immediately apply them in a simulation of the real world to test your skills against others, and that’s what this business is all about: finding the right mix of everything to be the best.” (Justin Parry, President, Parry Custom Homes, Irwin, PA)

“The value of [the] Pipeline [workshop] is you can leave a two-day workshop equipped with the necessary tools and knowledge to have an immediate impact on your company’s profitability, regardless of your role within the organization.” (Brandon Hart. Senior Consultant, Continuum Advisory Group, Raleigh, NC)

“If [teammates] can utilize this information correctly and make good business decisions, owners are free to consult and finance rather than handhold. I also thought that the interactive games really showed how everyday decisions can make-or-break your production pipeline. If a start or a closing is delayed, the whole rhythm of the pipeline is off; you can’t correct that disruption, since it is a function of time. A [lost] start can never be made up.” (Sara Flint, Controller, Homebuilder Solutions, LLC, Tampa, FL)

“ROA is not discussed much in the building industry; the focus has always been on margins per house. Through the Pipeline workshop, you will learn that your company ROA is just as important to know as margins per house.” (Mark Ivey, Owner, Ivey Residential, LLC, Evans, GA)

“I think the concept of ROA or inventory turn can be THE differentiator between success and failure in a production type environment. It requires thought one level past the “P&L”, but will allow the manager that can recognize [its] impact and implement it, a major competitive advantage.” (Wade Jurney, Wade Jurney Homes, Greensboro, NC)

“The Pipeline workshop provides full insight into the application of universal principles of production. It provides clear and convincing proof that improving velocity will yield not only faster profits but greater profits. I look forward to attend it again with some of my key staff.” (Carlos Alvarez, President, Alvarez Construction)

“The Pipeline workshop was a great chance for my team to learn some excellent fundamentals for a better business in a very straightforward manner. The instructors were superb, and the overall atmosphere was one of education, fun, and comradery.” (David Savicki, Purchasing Manager, Cimarron Homes)

“It proved to be a great opportunity to enlighten our entire management team with a ‘higher level understanding’ of how our business works.” (Craig Morrison, CEO, Cimarron Homes)

“The Pipeline workshop was an eye opening experience. Not being an owner of the company, sometimes you don’t realize the impact day-to-day business decisions have on the true desired bottom line results of the company. Playing the Pipeline game gave me that ‘ah-ha’ moment, seeing first-hand how those decisions can influence your bottom line. I took away invaluable insight on what it takes to operate a profitable homebuilding company.” (Daniel Hopkins, Director of Purchasing/Estimating, Jeff Benton Homes)

“As an owner of a home building company, intimately understanding the importance of home building production principles, as taught in the Pipeline workshop and book, and effectively implementing them in our building processes, will be critically important to becoming a best-of-breed builder in our competitive market. Running our company using these home building production principles will not only allow us to weather the next downturn intact, but grow in a healthy way.” (Josh Lysen, Principal, Merit Homes)

“The Pipeline workshop really took a different focus and approach than I was used to. I enjoyed the group workshop forum that was very interactive. It’s information that will long term and continually be thought about and digested in my day-to-day work. It presented an interesting balance concerning the importance of cycle time in regards to the financial and operation spectrum. It was challenging and thought-provoking. The group games really brought the concepts to life. I appreciated the “Accelerators” discussion that touched on some of the best practices and implementation. The workshop challenged me to be a better leader in regards to velocity and its importance, as my Team and I will be looking for the best ways to apply the concepts to our business model.” (Jeremy Tesimale, Production/Construction Manager, Essex Homes)

“The Pipeline is a concept that we, as a team, were aware of before coming to the seminar. That said, being aware of it and being able to understand and implement are two very different things. After going through the case study and the [simulations], we as a group went home better prepared to implement it in our company. We feel that it will be a long-term building block for us going forward.” (Justin Morrison, Vice President, Cimarron Homes)

“The Pipeline workshop conducted by SAI Consulting and Continuum Advisory Group was a straight-forward introduction to what matters most in the homebuilding industry…. Velocity! Although many of the concepts reviewed are not new to most managers, the manner in which they were highlighted was eye-opening. The case study, simulations, and discussion with the instructors made it crystal clear as to how to go back to my operation and implement immediate improvements. The interaction amongst the diverse group of attendees was also invaluable. How often do we get the opportunity to discuss best practices with others in our field? The workshop was time and money well spent, and I’m already getting a return on my investment!” (Mike Cancilla, General Manager, Essex Homes, SE)

The next Pipeline workshop™ will be held at the Ponte Vedra Inn and Club, Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, on October 14-15, 2015. Cost is $795.00. Early registration, open through July 31, 2015, is $645.00.

Pipeline Workshops™

Pipeline Workshops™, sponsored by BUILDER and BuilderMT, are designed to transfer in-depth knowledge and create an intuitive, instinctive understanding of production principles and disciplines, focused specifically on homebuilding production management.